MLK, RBG, You? Bold Leadership-Dare to Dream.

Reflect and Act toward Your Leadership Legacy: Teaspoons and Bold Transformation.

MLK, RBG? You know exactly who these leaders are because of their transformational leadership. What kind of leader are you, and how are you making a difference? Are you engaged to the level you’d like to be? Who and what opportunities are you impacting?  

Now more than ever, leadership on racial justice and gender equity, both in workplace culture and for healthy communities, matters. What superhero superpower, personal strengths, and unique leadership can you bring to the table? I’ve reflected on that myself, and today- on our Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Day of Service - it is a powerful time to think about what we already are, and can, influence and collaborate on to build the world we all want to live in. 

Reflect: What has your journey been and what is your foundation? 

My foundation - It’s all about the people

I started my career trained by some of the best human resources (HR) minds and Twin Cities peers in the business. It was right at the exciting time when the old stereotype of the personnel department as paper pushers had been taken over by new vision of Human Resources and there was a new understanding that our most valuable asset was our people and we had to invest in them. For example, being a best place to work for working mothers – with policies and resources to back it up - mattered. 

Later, leading a corporate HR functional department and then consulting and leading in physician and executive compensation strategy all across the country – from Baltimore to Miami to Honolulu - I learned how valuable incentives were AND how there is a huge rush of personal internal motivation that can be either nurtured or crushed by how incentives are structured. I also learned – and had to adapt to – the fact that each community was different and each individual organization had different needs, from culture to cost of living. 

Finally, when I made what I thought was a major career shift from HR to corporate social impact and community relations, I soon saw a similar dramatic shift evolving in my current career field (corporate social responsibility(CSR)) with a growing transformation from nice-to-do work to essential seat-at-the-table strategic work, with chief social impact officers being named to sit right alongside chief human resources officers on senior leadership teams. In both the corporate functions of HR and social impact it’s all about the people. 

Leadership matters – today more than ever.

The thread throughout all my experiences has been that leadership matters. The tone at the top affects everything from employee morale to how effective a business will be. 

Each person has an internal motivation and sources of inspiration– what are yours? 

Beyond our professions and skills, each of us has internal motivations and personal experiences that motivate us. This month I’ve been reflecting on that more than ever and I realize that better understanding my own inner motivation and inspiration helps drive me toward the goals that matter most to me. Today’s experience – January 18, the 2021 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Day of Service – spurred me to pull this reflection together into something more concrete for myself. What would your list look like?  

1. Words of Wisdom inspire me to consider what’s possible: I am incredibly inspired by quotes and they help me keep going when times get tough. Each day I am inspired by the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson's definition of success, posted to the right of my kitchen stove, that continue to spur me on to clarify my definition of success. 
2. People challenge me to be better: And every person I talk to, somehow, seems to help me reflect on my ongoing process of defining success and managing my energy toward various goals. I call to mind an exchange with a leader last week that AGAIN made me reassess and fine tune my definition of success. I can’t diminish the value of impact I make, simply because it is not always the big, bold MLK, RBG type of impact. (Thank you, Monica.)
3. Reading – especially within a community of my three book clubs and literary events - is a touchstone that broadens my view: Many of us have read and discussed countless books this year focused on anti-racism. A recent book club experience reading and discussing In My Own Words, by Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG), written with Mary Hartnett and Wendy W. Williams, was particularly moving. Virtually in community last week I learned about The Order of the Teaspoon (read more below) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s connection to that cause. (Thank you Katheren.). “The fire is huge but each of us, millions of us, armed with a teaspoon, can help turn the flame to ashes.” RBG quoting Amos Oz’s philosophy as she accepted the Gilel Storch Award, Stockholm 2019. 
4. Connecting the dots across people, organizations and ideas matters: I have a burning need to connect the parts of my life that resonate most. And all of this was stirring in me as I sat down to participle in the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast this morning with my table of Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity colleagues and in the company of 40 Blue Cross leader that I knew were also in attendance, amongst 5,000 nonprofit and corporate leaders. Then, together with HandsOn Twin Cities and 300 volunteers this afternoon and through to other events today and tonight, I know that these are the people that show up and the ideas that will drive change forward. Rather than just a network map I envision a people, organization, and idea map, where there are so many overlaps. 
5. Action – through volunteerism – is an essential way to connect on the major issues of the day: Anyone that knows me knows I see volunteerism as a path toward crucial community connection and social impact. Quoting Tracy Nielsen, executive director of HandsOn Twin Cities today, at Volunteerism – a Bold Conversation today:  “Volunteerism can be a start for many of us on the journey together toward equity. What a powerful discussion - impacting 300 people today– and it was great to connect personally with four other people in our breakout group. 

 “No matter who you are there are ways to be bold through volunteerism.” Nedege Souvenir.  

“Consider what the needs are and address them through the lens of the people that are being served.” Laverne McCartney Knighton.

“Volunteerism gives you a way to get involved with your passion while making a difference for community,” Jonathan Palmer.


"Be Bold – be willing to take a risk, and be bold in your volunteerism.” Seena Hodges

Together we can learn and drive impact

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s immense contributions – like those of Ruth Bader Ginsburg – can’t possibly be encompassed in the quotes that many people have come to know them by. But, by reading about their views, analyzing their impact, and considering their actions, we can make more impact in our own communities and beyond.

We can't all be MLK or RBG, but you know what? We can learn from them.

“Be bold enough to carve out your own way. Dare to dream.” Reatha Clark King, co-founder of the UNCF General Mills MLK Breakfast, speaking January 18, 2021, MLK Breakfast. 

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Thanks to all who made today possible in some way, including sponsors, and particularly General Mills, Target, Best Buy, and HandsOn TwinCities. Check out some of the resources that were mentioned today or that I know to be valuable. 

• Genera Mills Allyship Resources: CEO Jeff Harmening again said today, “Our belief in being a force for good compels us to act.” "Where to start? Honestly, there is no one or right answer, other than to start somewhere and do something."
• Anti –Racism Daily. Daily Actions to Dismantle White Supremacy, shared courtesy of the awesome Target team members in our HandsOn Twin Cities Bold Volunteerism breakout group today. 
• 31st Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Event - OUR RISING VOICES: A Call for Bold Social Action, January 18, 2021, A Virtual Celebration. Watch the 2021 MLK Breakfast Re-Broadcast:

Twin Cities volunteerism leadership resources and partner opportunities: 

• HandsOn Twin Cities
• HandsOn Twin Cities -Volunteerism: A Bold Conversation
• HandsOn Twin Cities and REM5 for Good
• YWCA Minneapolis – Eliminating Racism; Empowering Women
• Hallie Q. Brown Community Center
• Northside Achievement Zone
• Voices for Racial Justice
• Corporate Volunteerism Council – Twin Cities
• Minnesota Keystone Program – Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce

Global Resources:

• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The King Center for Nonviolent Social Change Check out their Nonviolence365? training. The two-day class introduces participants to the philosophies and methodologies of nonviolence used by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. during the civil rights movement and teaches how the Six Steps and Six Principles of Nonviolence, as coined by Dr. King, can be used in everyday life. The training is a critical step in understanding how nonviolence can prepare people across the globe to embrace nonviolence as a lifestyle and as a vehicle for social change.
• United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
• The Order of the Teaspoon

"I believe that if one person is watching a huge calamity, let’s say a conflagration, a fire, there are always three principle options.

1. Run away, as far away and as fast as you can and let those who cannot run burn.

2. Write a very angry letter to the editor of your paper demanding that the responsible people be removed from office with disgrace. Or, for that matter, launch a demonstration.

3. Bring a bucket of water and throw it on the fire, and if you don’t have a bucket, bring a glass, and if you don’t have a glass, use a teaspoon, everyone has a teaspoon.


And yes, I know a teaspoon is little and the fire is huge but there are millions of us and each one of us has a teaspoon.” - Amos Oz

Ruth Bader Ginsburg accepting the Gilel Storch Award, Stockholm 2019, donating part of her award to The Order of the Teaspoon. https://youtu.be/yrxmUlD5zgM